That's close to what I was thinking - only my suggestion would be to cut it down to about a foot off the ground and let it sprout back fresh... but, that's not a professional opinion.
Crepe myrtles are probably like mimosas - very hard to kill.
How to Bring Enormous Crape Myrtle Down to 10 Feet?
- Thread starter Paul Bunions
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Crepe myrtles are probably like mimosas - very hard to kill.
After looking at a close up, you're right, thinning the bulk off the top would make a huge improvement.
Previous topping is probably what made it bushy in the first place.
Just pull the Spanish moss out with a pole saw.
Arborists' know that only minor pruning looks better and is better for your tree.
It's your tree though so hack it as you see fit.
Around here, there are a lot of crape myrtles. I am no crape myrtle expert. I have no idea how they look in other states. There are lots and lots of them under 10 feet high here, so to me, this one seems huge.
There are also many of them here with only one trunk, so I wonder if I can cut out a few of the 3,000 trunks this one has and get a more pleasing shape.
If you think I'm butchering this tree, be glad I didn't tell you about the loropetalums I cut from about 6 feet to 10 inches high. They may die, in which case I'll put new ones in. They were old and never had leaves close to the ground. I think this is what "leggy" means.
I have two spindly magnolias I plan to rip out. I don't know anything about magnolias, but it seems like the little red ones always look like Charlie Brown's Christmas tree.
I used the tractor to tear out a bunch of pittisporums a few days ago. They were in the wrong place They made it a pain to get out of a car in the driveway.
I took my Makita electric and girdled a magnolia which must be 45 feet tall. The people who lived here before let it grow into the middle of a live oak canopy, so it had no future. I want the heavy leaves to fall off before I fell it.
I think the lady of the house screwed things up. Women love cluttering things until you smother. We had like 8 different shrubs around the sides of the house, along with a concrete flowerbox by the pool with no less than 4 trees in about 12 square feet of space. A banana tree, a pygmy date palm, a fishtail palm, and some other thing I killed. Unbelievable.
They put two bottlebrush trees about a foot from my workshop's foundation. I put those on the burn pile recently.
We have boxwood shrubs. They look like they have Ebola. I have never seen a nice boxwood. The wife and I are thinking of killing them and leaving grass where they stood.
There was originally a 40-foot maple tree less than 15 feet from the house. Thank God lightning got it.
There are also many of them here with only one trunk, so I wonder if I can cut out a few of the 3,000 trunks this one has and get a more pleasing shape.
If you think I'm butchering this tree, be glad I didn't tell you about the loropetalums I cut from about 6 feet to 10 inches high. They may die, in which case I'll put new ones in. They were old and never had leaves close to the ground. I think this is what "leggy" means.
I have two spindly magnolias I plan to rip out. I don't know anything about magnolias, but it seems like the little red ones always look like Charlie Brown's Christmas tree.
I used the tractor to tear out a bunch of pittisporums a few days ago. They were in the wrong place They made it a pain to get out of a car in the driveway.
I took my Makita electric and girdled a magnolia which must be 45 feet tall. The people who lived here before let it grow into the middle of a live oak canopy, so it had no future. I want the heavy leaves to fall off before I fell it.
I think the lady of the house screwed things up. Women love cluttering things until you smother. We had like 8 different shrubs around the sides of the house, along with a concrete flowerbox by the pool with no less than 4 trees in about 12 square feet of space. A banana tree, a pygmy date palm, a fishtail palm, and some other thing I killed. Unbelievable.
They put two bottlebrush trees about a foot from my workshop's foundation. I put those on the burn pile recently.
We have boxwood shrubs. They look like they have Ebola. I have never seen a nice boxwood. The wife and I are thinking of killing them and leaving grass where they stood.
There was originally a 40-foot maple tree less than 15 feet from the house. Thank God lightning got it.
If anyone wants to recommend a moss-pulling tool, by brand and model, I am all ears. I tried spraying it with baking soda. I should have known that was a crock. It's like the BS vegan women tell people about keeping bugs out of the house with essential oils. Right, and soy cures ovarian cancer.
I think I'll try straightening out a coat hanger instead.
Hose clamp it to an old broom handle.
Maybe TNT has a low mileage one she will lend you.
Made according to your specifications - plus my wood burning decorations - it came out nicely
I'm looking for the photo.
This photo
Here's the one Del made
https://www.arboristsite.com/threads/store-bought-potatoes.373588/page-2#post-8226317
Here's the one Del made
https://www.arboristsite.com/threads/store-bought-potatoes.373588/page-2#post-8226317
And here's mine
Mine was a lot more fun to make than it is to use.
Mine was a lot more fun to make than it is to use.
See those little weeds?
That's the size when they are easy to kill.
Works well on onion sets and small onions.
I have a short handled version, too, and have had for 30 plus years using in the vegetable patch.
Coat hanger clamped to the end of a broom handle would probably get rid of that moss. 
Therealrusty
ArboristSite Lurker
People in general are impatient, wanting everything now, instant everything. ornamental nursery growers plant/stick/root MULTIPLE cuttings into one pot to make the sellable container stock look bigger and bushier, and 99.9999999999999999% of the consumers ALWAYS grab those. Where in reality 99.99999999999999999% of the time thats a recepie for disaster, like your situation. I ALWAYS look for a plant with a single leader/ stem . If I cant get one I get the one with the fewest stems then seperate them into individual plants.
The majority of the time when you prune a large portion of a established plant its going to sucker multiple growth shoots up from the ground / base and and through out the plant canopy & thats going to compound the issue. Once your tree starts suckering up from the ground-- my experience is that its a never ending issue-- its for life and thats a ton of work. Prune your plants when they are young and as they grow
I live in Fl also
The majority of the time when you prune a large portion of a established plant its going to sucker multiple growth shoots up from the ground / base and and through out the plant canopy & thats going to compound the issue. Once your tree starts suckering up from the ground-- my experience is that its a never ending issue-- its for life and thats a ton of work. Prune your plants when they are young and as they grow
I live in Fl also
Crepe myrtle are multistem...
Therealrusty
ArboristSite Lurker
They can be, if multiple cuttings are stuck in the same potCrepe myrtle are multistem...
But other wise-- no they are not"multi-stem"
Therealrusty
ArboristSite Lurker
As you can clearly see, each one of these crepe myrtles are a single stem plant- not multiple
I think you might want to brush up on the subject prior to making definitive statements
I have propigated and grown literally tens of thousands of plants from cuttings over the past 40 years, so all that I have posted here is from first hand -- hands on in the field exp.
Not trying to bust your bubble or be mean in any way-- just the facts
I think you might want to brush up on the subject prior to making definitive statements
I have propigated and grown literally tens of thousands of plants from cuttings over the past 40 years, so all that I have posted here is from first hand -- hands on in the field exp.
Not trying to bust your bubble or be mean in any way-- just the facts
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